VeSPoTec

The research consortium “VeSPoTec” (“Verification in a complex and unpredictable world: social, political and technical processes”) explores the verification of states' compliance with their nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation obligations. A central feature of the research consortium is its integrated interdisciplinary approach: VeSPoTec combines technical and social science strands of peace and conflict research, thereby building a bridge between different areas of knowledge within verification research.

In the first funding phase (April 2022 to March 2026), VeSPoTec analyzed existing verification regimes in the nuclear field and, in close exchange with practitioners, developed perspectives for future verification scenarios. The focus was particularly on the underlying information bases and the methods used to evaluate them. In addition, the consortium examined the role of verification in building trust between states, including through practical verification exercises. Three central cross-cutting themes emerged: safeguards under crisis conditions, the reliability of verification (knowledge) in a multiplex world order, and the conditions for irreversible nuclear disarmament.

Building on these results, the second funding phase, titled “Knowing in the Nuclear Weapons World” (April 2026 to March 2028), is geared towards the strategic establishment of an internationally visible verification hub. It focuses on the political, epistemological, technical, and strategic processes that shape nuclear verification. Special attention is given to two focus areas: the reconfiguration of nuclear verification in the context of increasing geopolitical fragmentation and the breakdown of established arms control (1), and the role of artificial intelligence and new technologies in verification processes (2). The objective is to build an international research network and advisory center – the VeSPoTec Hub – that pools expertise and translates it into policy advice and training for young scholars.